Liz Barry

Chances are, your latest project or enterprise features ways for people to “get involved” and “take action.” But what does it mean to truly participate? This class introduces the idea that participation itself, from digital to non-digital, needs to be designed. We will explore collaboration ventures occurring in the knowledge production, transportation, housing, education, food, and finance sectors. We will analyze these models of participation for their social and economic impact, then develop our own participation spectrum and apply it toward crafting new problem statements. Throughout this course, we will explore when technology can serve as a democratizing force, while assessing the limits of virtual participation.